life expectancy of an infantry soldier in vietnam
I carried the PRC-25 Radio most of that time. Thank You General Vessey for the almost 53 years I have lived since that day. Some Brothers said why spend another year in this hellhole???? Fact: The American military was not defeated in Vietnam. Now we know. Both served in A 2/18 1st Infantry Division For some reason, the written word of this article was somehow deleted and lost. Both served in A 2/18 1st Infantry Division. (tirotactico.net). (LogOut/ The life expectancy of a radio operator in the Vietnam War ranged between five to six seconds all the way up to a slightly-more-optimistic thirty seconds, depending on your source. After about 30 minutes, the four enemy soldiers got up and left the area. 101st Airborne Division. I did worry about the strength of my flax vest. Do the math. Everyone in the company hit the dirt. They were also in a circular formation. C Co, 1st-12th 66-67. Jimmy aaja, jimmy aaja. (and yes, you cant ask them, so it would have to be derived from the AA-reports and survivors). Were talking averages, obviously so, an RTO, with an expectancy of 5 seconds (!) 1 Gun was firing. sweep team,then I heard the choppers and they were blowing the hell out in the tree line then it just got so quiet like nothing Fact: Mortality studies show that 9,000 is a better estimate. Lucky you. For his actions, he was awarded the Congressional Medal if Honor. The Vietnamese pilot who dropped the napalm in error is currently living in the United States. 3 Answers C5H5N in water > C5H5NH+ & OH- Kb = [C5H5NH+] [OH-] / [C5H5N] 1.5e-9 = [x] 1. I was already lugging around a 24-pound weapon, 300 rounds of ammo and a pack that weighed a good 45 pounds. by Zita Ballinger Fletcher 1/18/2022. It was more or less next man up . I will always think/say, we had absolutely no reason for being in that place. I couldnt see DeLong and didnt know if No. I was a cmbt engr demolition specialist carried a 45 auto and an M70 grenade launcher in addition to the C-4 and Det Cord. We flew north, then made a stop, in Cam Rahn Bay. Walked point way to many times but never had contact. From the Landing Zone, we were carried not too far. When I was assigned to the M60 in advanced individual training, I decided that if I had to be a gunner I would learn everything there was to know about the weapon. The average infantryman in Vietnam saw about 240 days of combat in one year thanks to the mobility of the helicopter. Phi Pow B.Sc (econ) in Economic History & Economics (college minor), London School of Economics and Political Science Author has 212 answers and 234.6K answer views 2 y Originally Answered: What soldier had the shortest life expectancy? I worried about that kind of leadership style in the highlands. Love this analysis. On Sun, Mar 8, 2020 at 4:00 PM CherriesWriter Vietnam War website wrote: > pdoggbiker posted: A friend recently sent me the link to an article > claiming that the life expectancy of a radio operator in the Vietnam War > was only 5 seconds. The average age of the men killed: 23.1 years. I was wasting ammo and didnt even have a target! Some 23% of Vietnam vets had fathers with professional, managerial Two of my classmates were killed within 2 weeks incountry and three wounded I know of. Soon after, Pfc. I know this is a standard cliche, but it is so true, All gave some. Photo above is of Stanley Kober with RTO, John Scheur. They were not randomly selected but simply the best at doing it. There were no Americans involved in any capacity. 4314 0 obj <> endobj We ambushed and got ambushed, firebase got attacked who carried what or did what had no bearing. This is not Vietnam where a machine gunner's life expectancy was short because you had an entire army shooting at them. Different type units, different locations, different opinions on dangers. Wow I was 31.8 Gun shot Carried model 1200 Winchester shot gun WIA May 68 Article was great. The average life expectancy of a front-line soldier in eastern Ukraine is four hours, a Marine said. When Roeski got hit, I took over the M-60. Bravo, 3/187th Inf, 101st Airborne Div, 2nd Plt, 2nd Sq, Hamburger Hill, May 69. They were held in special regard after the Normandy landings, when 225 Rangers scaled cliffs at Pointe Du Hoc on June 6, 1944 under intense enemy fire. Our 5th night there, the AMMO area started burning / blowing up. The answer that we have always been given is that 1 year in the Infantry is equivalent to 3 years of hard labor. HistoryNet.com contains daily features, photo galleries and over 25,000 articles originally published in our nine magazines. Vietnam veterans' personal income exceeds that of our non-veteran age group by more than 18 percent. I assisted Vessey and Capt Cartwright by helping prepare the Bee Hive Rounds (first time they were ever used), firing 4 rounds at proximity 0 range into a human wave attack on or weak side after 5 hours of relentless attacks on the opposite side of the perimeter Those 4 rounds killed @ 400 enemy soldiers, of the 881 total enemy losss John Vessey later became a 4 Star general and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs appointed by Reagan 1983, and at retirement became Chair of the POW MIA Commission for 14 years, Passing away in August 2016 just 6 months before our 50th Reunion. NFS. Then he said youre on a FB, the enemy always knows your location, can pretty much attack at will, and you really dont have the capability to retreat. That same day, I along with 3/4 others was transported to Long Bhin Post. Sept 69 to Sept 70. The Bronze Star was awarded to ALL that were awarded the CIB in WWII because the Infantry accounted for over 70% of the casualties in WWLL BUT NOT 70% )F ALL THE INFANTRY !!! I flew Dustoff and our unit did not have M60s for protection, nor did any other Dustoff unit that Im aware of. It means, IF (!) As some said, averages are meaningless. 2: role (MOS?). A "Sapper" is a combat engineer soldier who is with the front line infantry troops. Point was the safest place to be,they knew to wait for key elements, RTO, Medica, M60 Gunners. Company A searched in vain for the platoon in the dark and finally found the shattered unit on the morning of May 19. I got shot on a mission with 45 days left. Welcome Home Brothers ! Amazingly, the NVA men then walked a short distance away, sat down and ate lunch. 5 Answers There is no word like addressal. In my humble opiniona maneven leaders should often recalculate their adversaries capabilities and limitations and his own limitations as wellwhen 10,000 miles from home against a determined worthy foein a strange landThe objective of Lam Son 719? three, he believes he is doing what his country wants him to dojust like you So you better damn well treat him with the compassion you want for you!! When I popped back up to put out some automatic fire, a bullet whizzed by my earno more than an inch from my headand slammed into the tree next to me, shattering the bark. I lost my cherry very early. So I guess I defied the odds. No. The Bn & Company I was assigned to, was on the last row of Bldgs. Sure, its softer than it was before, but the training they go through is intense, something a loser who spends his time on the computer all day attacking people he doesnt know anything about and all the facts CANNOT do. This is hard to believe, losing nearly 711,000 between 95 and 00. I met a Marine a few years ago who was stationed North of Da Nang. Cluster F, SNAFU and FUBAR fer sur. Suddenly, I heard my name shouted from the Company B command group. I put the M60s bipod legs down, lifted the weapon and positioned it on the ground outside the streambed facing the NVA. Does this mean addressing to a crowd? 76% of the men sent to Vietnam were from lower middle/working class backgrounds. According to the American War Library, as of February 28, 2019, it is estimated that approximately 610,000 Americans who served in land forces during the Vietnam War or in air missions over Vietnam between 1954 and 1975 are still alive to this day. Sure but so was everyone else who went 12 months without getting killed or wounded. However, inaccurately reported, the News Media made the Tet Offensive famous. By mid-April 1967 I was pleading with the captain to get a replacement gunner for my M60 in 4th Platoon. We took fire all the time and responded. In Vietnam he cut the hair of everyone in his company for free. This article appeared in the October 2021 issue of Vietnam magazine. I was an Infantry Scout Dog handler. Of those killed, 61% were younger than 21 years old. Bloody May 1968 Mini TET. 1 Gun. I had an assistant gunner, Spc. History is who we are and why we are the way we are.. As of the current Census taken during August, 2000, the surviving U.S. Vietnam Veteran population estimate is: 1,002,511. We all gotta die sometime, Red. SSgt Barnes, Platoon, its nothing to really concern yourself with, on a long enough time line everyones survival rate is 0%. 23,24 This study found that the death rate for Vietnam veterans was 1.3 times that for non-Vietnam veterans; however, the excess deaths were limited to Engineer Corps members (RR, 2.5). Non-divisional aeromedical evacuation units went by the callsign DUSTOFF. Its just (bad) luck, fate, randomness theres no right or wrong, no justice or fairness, no reasoning. I was in 2nd Platoon and carried the platoons No. And yes, please God, bless America. In Vietnam 70% 0f the casualties were Infantry BUT it might be 70% of ALL the Infantry that served in Vietnam. I was to have that experience two more times before it was over. my left and saw this rice paddie farmer and his ox and I was trying to motion him to get down he just looks at me and starts 85% of Vietnam Veterans made successful transitions to civilian life. General Westmoreland quoting Douglas Pike (a professor at the University of California, Berkeley), a major military defeat for the VC and NVA. the life expectancy of a LT in Vietnam in major combat was 16 minutes. Thats why they called us GRUNTS ! Helicopters, F4 fighters. I was a 2nd Lt. Infantry platoon Leader. Some were constantly exposed to combat, some not so often. 4. He pulled the company into a perimeter and dispatched 4th Platoon to recon the trail to the west, while 1st Platoon performed a similar mission to the east-southeast. I was told to help carry one of the bodies. Over 900,000 patients were airlifted (nearly half were American). (Although 58,169 names are in the Nov. 93 database, only 58,148 have both event date and birth date. The planes doing the bombing near the village were VNAF (Vietnam Air Force) and were being flown by Vietnamese pilots in support of South Vietnamese troops on the ground. Diaphragm _____ 3. said to me. Most war stories are about soldiers and battles. 58,148 were killed and 304,000 wounded out of 2.7 million who served. If you were an administrative officer or clerk in an air-conditioned trailer in Saigon, your war might be a lot like peacetime duty. Of the . Done ranting. Sholly finally agreed and stated that the next time we received replacements I could give one of them my M60. The death squads focused on leaders at the village level and on anyone who improved the lives of the peasants such as medical personnel, social workers, and school teachers. No trees or anything on the ground. In all that time, the Tet 1968 fighting in Saigon was the only time the unit fought a pitched urban battlevery unusual during the war. We fought to an agreed stalemate. I want to know what the life expectancy of a us infantry army soldier is. Change), You are commenting using your Facebook account. Love you Wortman!!!! (Getty Images) Most war stories are about soldiers and battles. Proudly holding my M60 over my head, I screamed at the top of my lungs, No. All the comments and replies are of absolute truth, I was only 18 when I got to Nam ,Im a country boy from NC so here I am Sgt. where can i find red bird vienna sausage? John Doever Thank You Roger!!! 10 1/2 months in the bush. Surrounded by an enemy battalion, our hopelessly outnumbered platoon waged a desperate battle for survival. well I wonder how long your going to last lieutenant? Keep in step with US Wings Join our newsletter to receive all our latest news and offers, Example: Yes, I would like to receive emails from US Wings. I look over to No combat assignments for another year of service in Vietnam or get out in about a month. Originally I went to the 543d TC. The body felt as though it weighed considerably more than it looked. I packed my own radio and got a Thank you from his Mom. Over 600 Navy FMF Hospital Corpsmen were killed in Vietnam. An interesting essay, even more interesting are the comments. It was on the Job Training ! 1 Gun was on my hip with the safety off, ready to rock and roll. Point, slack and compass. Out of the 3,000,000 men and women in our armed forces and reserves, we have lost 4,500 in this 9 year war. The Marine Corps lost 14,836, or 5 percent . An infantry platoon commander in combat had an average of 6 weeks life expectancy. That was a hell of a responsibility to take on. E)V_5lu[vC3+"vg2L& To keep busy on the boat ride to Vietnam, my unitCompany B, 1st Battalion, 8th Infantry Regimentheld competitions where we took the gun apart and put it back together while blindfolded to see who could do it fastest. (many of the Soviet casualties were POWs, though). Some of my men didnt. Gotta say I think you hit it on the nose. May they rest in peace. Mech. On average US troops served 1-2 years in Vietnam, and the percentage of troops killed was actually fairly low for a war this size, 2.14% of all who served were killed, the life expectancy was roughly around 1 year, 5 months and 3 weeks (taking into account the 1-2 year difference in some troops's serving times) Sponsored by Primal Labs The dead were placed on ponchos. Date: March 8, 2020 Author: pdoggbiker 97 Comments Photo above is of Stanley Kober with RTO, John Scheur. The key may be the word initial since we became more savvy with successive combats and had improved survivability. It was just north of Saigon. Commanders like him were few and far between many were afraid of their own shadow and were only there to get their ticket punched. And dug Berms, in the area. 1 Gun more than I did. rice farmer who was still working with is ox like nothing ever Totally bogus. I watched in horror as four NVA soldiers ambled through the branches of a downed tree that partially concealed us. Although we do tend to bomb a lot, thats only half of what we do. Out of thousands of men that invaded that town in southern Afghanistan, we have lost 19. It was an honor indeed to serve with some of the finest soldiers I have ever met. Hack volunteered for service in Vietnam in 1968, joining the 1st Infantry Division. As I made it back to the road I remember seeing the An Hinglish word (Hindi/English). Contents 1 Unclear objectives 2 North Vietnamese strategy Our patrols were typically about 14 hours 24/7 We operated of old LSTs and large barges. A battery of big 155 mm howitzers blasted the tiny platoon perimeter, tearing trees out of the ground and hurling chunks of red-hot shell splinters through the air. Contents1 [] Cruz quite a lot. I wasnt sure if the VC had moved to right or left, so I sprayed the elephant grass in both directions. Nicknamed "the pig" due to its size, weight and sound, the gun struck fear into enemy troops. PLEASE HELP!!! I was an FO back in the day. Ambushed on October 4th,1967. I couldnt disagree. We were in2dBn 503d . "The Rangers pulled themselves over the top," President Ronald Reagan said of the men, in 1984. Soldiers also act in the mobilization of vehicles, weaponry, troops, and more. He then said that they were generally on patrol moving through their area, both attacking and being attacked depending if the VC knew their location. Ernest, Im glad that your first tour with the VN airborne was rewarding. Sorry,I was one of your Brothers in Arms that helped talk you out of enlisting for another year in Vietnam. The fall of Saigon happened 30 April 1975, two years AFTER the American military left Vietnam. Very Good , I was a radio operator up in I corps in 68 & to me the worst thing was the walking . 91% of Vietnam Veterans say they are glad they served. As mentioned, who kept track of that in the first place? Each company had eight M60s. I felt the same way jumping off the chopper with my m-60, 300. rounds of ammo,grenades,sandbags and six canteens of water. This is excellent! It is Honor in the Valley of Tears. Bruce Grandstaff and my best friend, Sgt. For some reason, the written word of this article was somehow deleted and lost. As an infantry platoon Sgt of a platoon made up of all draftees my age 21 plus or minus a year We fought the largest single one day battle of the war March 21, 1967 known as the Battle of Soui Tre, fire support base Gold operation Junction City, that base was commanded by LtCol John Vessey of the 2/77 FA Vessey was a 25 year veteran of WWII fame with a DSC at Anzio, and on this day he was looking at the end of his career after that tour in Vietnam. This is not Vietnam where a machine gunners life expectancy was short because you had an entire army shooting at them. He said when they were ambushed they took defensive positions, returned fire, called for assistance when needed, and retreated when necessary. Then I dropped back down in the streambed to organize our ammo. What the hell did you hit him with? one of our men shouted. Like most inexperienced gunners, he underestimated the power of the pig and failed to keep the barrel down when firing. Thats 390 per day. El subjuntivo Hurrying forward with No. Either way, thats a lot of soldiers, sailors, airmen, marines and coast guardsmen, male and female that made the ultimate sacrifice for our country, and there are still people dying as a result of their wounds receiver so very long ago in a place called Vietnam. We wanted a break. . The 4th Platoons single machine gun crewthe platoon had entered the fight short a gunhad been killed in the fighting, and I was to be moved there. I traveled to Fort Lewis, Washington, and trained there for 10 months before deploying to Vietnam as specialist 4. I think those numbers are percentages of US KIA, not mortality times. The average life expectancy of a Soviet soldier during the height of the battle was just 24 hours. A Co, 1/5 Cav, 1 Cav Division. I had been shot in the back early in the battle and was lying behind a log with two other soldiers. MEDEVAC helicopters flew nearly 500,000 missions. Great reading. Fact: The average infantryman in the South Pacific during World War II saw about 40 days of combat in four years. Papitto Opportunity Connections Mission: The Papitto Opportunity Connection (POC) is a private foundation dedicated to listening and working together with Rhode Islands BIPOC communities to empower and create individual success stories by investing in education, job skills training, and entrepreneurial ventures. I was shot down on my very first mission in July 1968. 99% of infantry men will currently live to die of natural causes. I prayed I would not have to fire over the heads of the 4th Platoon troops entering the draw to retrieve our dead. The three of us had trained together at Fort Lewis and were good friends. Shortly before 11 a.m. on May 18, the point squad in Company Bs 2nd Platoon spotted three NVA soldiers walking on a trail near the Cambodian border and attempted to capture them, but the NVA dashed off into the jungle. The peace settlement was signed in Paris on 27 January 1973. Ive always considered myself damn lucky to make it out alive. We were like sitting Ducks. I always was told that the life expectancy of a LT was 14 seconds in INITIAL combat versus 9 seconds for an RTO. Was I lucky ? In Vietnam, 1 in 400 of the wounded died of their . Over the next two months, we exchanged fire with groups of the NVA. 1 Gun had registered its first kill. V. Victor Renza was sent home after he was wounded on May 18, 1967. The Organization of the Viet Cong Units in the South never recovered. I spent 10 1/2 months in the jungles of Vietnam. 8h%5HF8r,X'q#Vtgz%)P/Oi#rU(uO&*Xx1t^=xVLi Rarely do we examine war through the unique bond between a man and his weaponin this case the . KICK ASS AS NEEDED!!! Then the tempo changed suddenly and violently. RIP KOOKIE forever young, Thank god you are still alive, I am age 77. Activated in 1915, as the 173rd Infantry Brigade, the unit saw service in World War II but is best known for its actions during the Vietnam War. As soon as he did, a round hit him in the forehead, blowing out the back of his skull. Videos, Film, Music, and Movies about VN War, Author interview War & Life: Discussions with a Veteran, A Chat Between Three Veterans [live video with author], Lest We Forget Meet the Authors & Book Signing April 4th: Cherries and Donut Dolly, Interview with author John Podlaski in Examiner Magazine, American Heroes Radio interviews author of Cherries A Vietnam War Novel, Cherries Author Interviewed on British Website, U.K. Blogspot posts interviews author, John Podlaski, More Book Reviews and author interviews about Cherries, Les Scates, U.S. Army (Ret.) Back in 1965, I was a door gunner on Medevac recovery operations. Carrying a dead man some 300 yards through thick jungle in 100-degree heat was extraordinarily difficult. No. We (Americans) had nothing to do with controlling VNAF, according to Lieutenant General (Ret) James F. Hollingsworth, the Commanding General of TRAC at that time. Overrun and utterly destroyed, the 30-man 4th Platoon had suffered 21 killed and one missing. At Fort Lewis, every recruit learned to operate various weapons. 87% of Americans hold Vietnam Veterans in high esteem. Es ridculo que t ______ (tener) un resfriado en verano. Enter the the Ksp expression forC2D3 in terms of the molar solubility x.? Life Expectancy of the World Population. I was stationed on 2 FSBs (8 & 175mm guns) west of Tay Ninh on the Cambodian boarder in the Ho Chi Minh trail and was wounded but nothing as bad as he was. We walked the mountains and rice patties all thru Tu Thien Province. To my surprise, I qualified as an expert with the M60 machine gun, nicknamed the pig because of the size, weight and sound of the weapon. Tony told me that either he or I would greet all incoming troops and we did- and here is the speech we gave to them. For example, life expectancy of male and female Veterans with household incomes less than $20,000, at respectively. This has been going on for about a week Every time I try to watch a video on Youtube from my laptop I get instantly redirected to "gslbeacon.ligit.com." (LogOut/ 6 Answers They say Kali Ma Theyre referencing this scene from the movie Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom: What is the life expectancy of an army infantry soldier? 97% of Vietnam Veterans were honorably discharged. However, Shermans were very outmatched by the German tanks on the field of battle. The earliest casualty record contains a date of death of . Cause-specific . 82nd 2/505th. Take out the power center, youve got the edge. aND, mAY GOD BLESS AMERICA!!! 2. I, in turn, would take an M16 rifle, which felt like a feather in comparison. located on the South End of, the Post. The income differentials in life expectancy for Veterans in 2011-14, however, are estimated to be smaller. I was never hit by enemy fire even though they had multiple opportunities after that I was an rto for the company commander and I have to say both jobs were not fun. 2 Gun to Ranallo. When we reached Company A, we placed our dead in the center of the two-company perimeter. Because if only 1 RTO fought for say only 10 or 15 minutes before being killed, that would up the AVG for the total war! In January 1967, the 1st Battalion, 8th Infantry, was airlifted to Pleiku province in the Central Highlands. Why is my internet redirecting to gslbeacon.ligit.com and how do I STOP THIS. One afternoon, while Company B was still in the Tuy Hoa area, we received orders to gather up our gear and get ready to board choppers for an assault into a hot landing zone. You just do the best job you can and if you got hit, so be it! In fact, after the 5-year post-service period, the rate of suicides is less in the Vietnam veterans group. He was posthumously awarded the Silver Star in 1974. 99% of infantry men will currently live to die of natural causes. In the last 5 years the symptoms of PTSD and AO are starting getting worse in me. As with much of the Vietnam War, the news media misreported and misinterpreted the 1968 Tet Offensive. We could not see any enemy soldiers, but we could see smoke coming from their weapons through the trees. 2,709,918 Americans served in uniform in Vietnam. A documentary about our company and our 1st Sgt was made. Thats my experience. As the entire platoon hit the ground, I saw guys crawling back toward me. Ed, I was in a Grunt Platoon in Vietnam 70-71. Robert Sholly, standing with Platoon Sgt. He retired in 2012 and lives in Delray Beach, Florida. US Wings recently added to OTEXA's Made in U.S.A. Amen I was a machine gunner for 7 months 503rd infantry 173rd airborne and you hit the nail right on the head. Naturally I was excited at the opportunity to join Sanzone, but at the same time I hated leaving 2nd Platoons No. As we were, steadily building up, our area for protection. 1 gun! Everyone laughed. Id love to see the casualties listed by Corps ? The jungle seemed to want No. We were probably not too far away on that day. I remember we were always short of replacements throughout 1968 because of the high Kia & wounded rate we suffered at that time ! There were also wounded. He was with the 509th Radio Research Station. Whether they produced battlefield images of the dead or daguerreotype portraits of common soldiers, []. Around 3 p.m., when Grandstaff realized we were about to be overrun, he called in artillery right on top of our location. They were located, next to us, in/on Long Bhin Post. They have a lower unemployment rate than the same non-vet age groups. The first man to die in Vietnam was James Davis, in 1961. 4 Paul Domke, who carried extra belts of ammo and fed them into the gun. In my tour everyone had the same chance of getting shot. Remember he wanted to reenlist for one more year in Vietnam. Still, militarily, the Tet Offensive was a total defeat of the Communist forces on all fronts. We soon learned that the NVA troops were very different from the local guerrillas we had fought around Tuy Hoa. Address: 561 E Hines Hill Road Hudson, Ohio 44236 Phone: 1-800-650-0659 / 330-655-5050 Fax: 330-653-3750 Email: [emailprotected], Retail Store Hours: Monday-Friday: 9am - 5pm EST Saturdays: 10am -3pm (Oct-Jan) Sundays: Closed. Completa las oraciones con la forma correcta del presente de subjuntivo de los verbos entre parntesis.? Thanks for the reply. There were two different groups that flew aeromedical evacuations. The incredibly important role in the U.S. Army is responsible for defending the country through real-life combat. This was another example in the Vietnam War of an inaccuracy becoming the perceived truth. Of the eight who remained, seven were wounded. In Company A, 22 men had been killedadded to the seven killed in Company B. David H. McNerney, who assumed command of the company when all of its officers were killed or wounded, was presented with the Medal of Honor in a White House ceremony in September 1968. Now, to calmly answer your question, air strikes have actually been an efficient technique used by us for years now. year old Marine thinking this is my last day on earth. Ha Ha always enjoyed being a volunteer! Fact: Assuming KIAs accurately represented age groups serving in Vietnam, the average age of an infantryman (MOS 11B) serving in Vietnam to be 19 years old is a myth, it is actually 22. How Many Vietnam War Veterans Are Still Alive? If anything went wrong, I could easily kill some of our soldiers.
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